Chapter 1293: How They Ended Up There

"We realized that the ninth heaven could not be defended anymore, so my brother decided to order the tribe's total evacuation to the eighth heaven." Rafen took a deep breath once more before releasing it. His mind seemed to drift back to that era when he had watched so many of his kin die.

"Many members of our tribe died in the war defending our land and also during the evacuation from the ninth heaven. It included the Third, Fifth, and Sixth Elders."

He paused for a moment before continuing.

"Long story short, we managed to evacuate to the eighth heaven."

"We were determined to defend the eighth heaven together with the other races. We could not let the rest of the heavens fall like the ninth heaven." He sighed.

"But we still underestimated the invaders' numbers. They were truly like a never-ending tide. If we killed one of them, two or three more would come. We were much stronger, but in the end we grew weary from fighting an endless stream of enemies."

"In the end, we were still defeated, and we also lost the eighth heaven, forcing our tribe to evacuate once again. It kept happening through the lower heavens until we finally reached the second heaven. By that time, the Celestial Mountain Spirit Tribe had already lost most of its higher-ups, leaving only my brother, me, and the First Elder."

Rafen's eyes were filled with pain as he lifted his head to look at the ceiling of the building for a moment before lowering it again.

"Initially, I wanted to stake everything on defending the second heaven. I was ready to sacrifice my life at that time. Our tribe was almost extinct, with only fifty of us remaining out of thousands. However, my brother did not agree. Instead, he chose to leave the tribe in my hands to await Your Majesty's return."

"The prophecy from Lord Heavenly Demon and Lord Tianlian that Your Majesty would return in the future had already spread among all of us, after all. So my brother wanted me and our tribe to support Your Majesty in the future."

Rafen released a sigh.

"In the end, he had to sacrifice himself to give our tribe a chance to survive when the invaders quickly spread across the second heaven. He fought more than ten gods and tens of demigods by himself. Those invaders were quite cunning with their strategy of using this domain as both a hostage and a battlefield."

"My brother had no choice but to bear the sin of killing countless lives. He had to do that so that we could live and continue our struggle for the future. He used one of our most powerful techniques, the Celestial Mountain Descending from Heaven."

"He burned his life essence and poured everything he had into unleashing that devastating mass destruction technique. The Celestial Mountain Descending from Heaven was enough to devastate this domain, killing countless people. But he also brought down all the gods and invaders attacking him, along with most of the invaders throughout this domain."

Rafen's eyes dimmed. He remembered how his brother unleashed that mass destruction technique. Although his brother's true cultivation had been sealed, as a divine being, he could still unleash destructive power that could shake the entire domain.

The sight of his brother making a giant mountain descend from the sky was still vivid in his memories. At the moment of impact, if not for the defensive artifact, he and the other members of the tribe would have also died from that technique.

That mountain was what many people mistook for a star or a comet, or whatever stories they had heard regarding the origin of the forest.

The scene after the mountain fell was truly like hell, but he had already been entrusted with the tribe's future and knew what he had to do at that time.

"We were safe because we brought our defensive artifact, which protected the remnants of our tribe from my brother's technique. However, we knew we were only safe for a short time because the invasion still had not stopped."

"After the destruction caused by my brother's technique, I decided to stay where the mountain had fallen. We lived underground for many months while waiting for the aftermath across the domain to disappear."

"Only after the surface became habitable again did we finally dare to live on the surface. But the war in the second heaven was still not over, and it was only a matter of time before the invaders came to this domain again."

"The First Elder and I created a giant nature-based formation to protect the core area. We had to use almost all of our resources to create it, and it took us more than a year to complete."

Rafen released a deep breath and smiled bitterly.

"Well, that is how we ended up living here. As time passed, I became the only one from that era still alive. The First Elder had already passed away because of the injuries he sustained during the great battle against the invaders. I was the only one who reached divinity and could live until this moment."

"This place, along with the surrounding region, became our territory, with many descendants of the refugees settling here. We made sure this region became a dangerous place so that none of the invaders would find us, the survivors from the ninth heaven and the followers of Your Majesty."

There was silence for a moment. The avatar then released a sigh.

"I see. It must have been tough for you, Rafen. I am truly sorry for what happened to all of your family." The avatar's tone was filled with sympathy.

Rafen smiled warmly at the avatar.

"Well, that was a long time ago, so I feel much better now. Moreover, I still have the hope of making those invaders pay for everything they did to us and this universe. I have waited for this day, when Your Majesty would return, just as Lord Heavenly Demon and Lord Tianlian prophesied. With Your Majesty, I believe we can finally give those invaders a taste of despair."

The avatar also smiled and nodded.

"That will happen. You can mark my words."

"I believe in Your Majesty," Rafen said.

The avatar's expression then turned curious.

"But then I'm curious about your position in the resistance group. From what I heard, your existence here is unknown to most of the resistance group's members. Why are you hiding yourself like that? Also, have you really never left this place since you settled here?"

Rafen nodded.

"Yes, I have never left this place. In fact, I spend all my time inside the ancestral hall located underground near the village. As for why I am hiding myself like this, it is because I don't want to attract the attention of that bastard Avergis." Rafen's eyes glistened dangerously.

"With the fall of the second heaven, I came to know that it had become Avergis' territory. With him already controlling the second heaven, I had to be careful with my movements. I decided to stay in my ancestral hall and not release even a trace of my aura so that Avergis' divine sense would not detect me."

"As a Divine Realm cultivator, I know that my presence would be easily detected if Avergis were truly intent on searching for any remnants of the divine realm cultivators from this universe. If the situation is not so dire that I have to make a move personally, then I have no reason to leave my hall."

"Only a limited number of people know of my existence because that is what I want. The fewer people who know, the better. I don't want my existence to somehow be discovered by Avergis' followers. It would be dangerous for both me and our group if that happened."

The avatar nodded and then smiled. He couldn't help but find it amusing as he thought that Rafen probably did not know about Gu Cangtian's existence, and vice versa. They both believed they might be the only Divine Realm cultivator in the resistance group.

"So this is the first time you've come out of your ancestral hall after all these years?" the avatar asked.

Rafen nodded with a smile.

"Yes, Your Majesty. Well, why should I continue to hide? Your Majesty is already here. My time of waiting is already over, and I know that in the near future we will finally make our move. I have already heard from the people who attended the gathering that Your Majesty is preparing a war to retake the second heaven."

The avatar nodded.

"Yes, the chaos outside at this moment is part of my plan before we begin the war against the powers across the second heaven, especially the temple. My main target is the temple, as it is the main foundation that allows Avergis to maintain his control over the second heaven."

Rafen's eyes glistened. He felt an anticipation unlike anything he had felt before.

"Your Majesty, if I may ask, what should I do when the war begins?"

The avatar then explained what Rafen and his troops needed to do the moment he gave the signal to start the war. They discussed the war plan for more than half an hour, and during that discussion Rafen finally learned of Gu Cangtian's existence, which surprised him.

"To think that man survived. I did not expect him to be in the second heaven as well. The situation back then was truly chaotic. I did not know who from our universe had managed to survive in the second heaven." Rafen sighed.

"I am glad that he survived."

After a moment, it was finally Rafen's turn to look curious.

"Now that we have discussed the war plan, there is something I would like to ask, if I may."

"Of course. You can ask me. What is it?" the avatar said.

"Then, how has your life been in this current life, Your Majesty? What kind of life are you living now?"

Hearing the question, the avatar smiled.

"Well, the only way I can describe my current life is as a familial life." His tone became softer.